What action is a Checkers franchisee required to take if Checkers requests it to evidence ownership or obtain intellectual property rights in the Materials?
Checkers Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
- 7.03 Information Exchange. You must promptly disclose to us all recipes, processes, ideas, concepts, advertising and promotional materials, website pages and content, methods, techniques or materials used or useful to a fast-food restaurant business, whether or not constituting protectable intellectual property, that you create, or that are created on your behalf or for your benefit by your Owners or employees, in connection with the development or operation of your Restaurant (collectively, the "Materials"). Any such Materials will be deemed our sole and exclusive property, part of the System, and works made-for-hire for us. To the extent that any one of the Materials does not qualify as a "work made-for-hire" for us (as such term is defined under Section 101 of the U.S. Copyright Act), by way of this paragraph you irrevocably convey, grant, transfer and assign ownership of the Material(s), and all related rights to the Materials, both during and after the Term,
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD pages 91–92)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Checkers's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, a franchisee must take actions that Checkers deems necessary to evidence ownership or obtain intellectual property rights in the Materials. The franchisee must promptly disclose to Checkers all recipes, processes, ideas, concepts, advertising and promotional materials, website pages and content, methods, techniques or materials used or useful to a fast-food restaurant business, whether or not constituting protectable intellectual property, that the franchisee creates, or that are created on the franchisee's behalf or for the franchisee's benefit by the franchisee's Owners or employees, in connection with the development or operation of their Restaurant (collectively, the "Materials").
These Materials are deemed Checkers's sole and exclusive property, part of the System, and works made-for-hire for Checkers. To the extent that any one of the Materials does not qualify as a "work made-for-hire" for Checkers, the franchisee irrevocably conveys, grants, transfers and assigns ownership of the Material(s), and all related rights to the Materials, both during and after the Term.
This means that Checkers has broad rights over any intellectual property the franchisee develops related to the restaurant. The franchisee gives up ownership of these materials and must assist Checkers in securing those rights. This is a fairly standard clause in franchise agreements, as the franchisor needs to protect its brand and system. A prospective franchisee should be aware that any creative ideas or improvements they develop for their Checkers restaurant automatically become the property of the franchisor.